The Craft
Dominick practicing ancestral magic.]] Witchcraft is a practice of magic used by Witches that encompasses many different types of activities including astrology, Divination, Spell Casting and spirit communication. It includes the practices of many cultures, nations and religions as well as many books and writings from ancient times. Depending upon the individual, some witches practice their power by certain belief systems, such as Shamanism, Voodoo, Santería, Wicca, or any number of other magical practices from countries and cultures all around the world. Although the majority of traditional witches are commonly portrayed as being kind and selfless humans who use their powers to maintain balance within the world; it has been proven by multiple characters that some witches are independent thinkers who may go against the Balance of Nature by practicing their powers for dark and sinister deeds. Different types of Magic Ancestral Magic Ancestral Magic can be an extremely powerful form of witchcraft that is commonly used among the witches of the nine circles of Los Angeles. Similar to spirit magic, this form of sorcery draws its energy from the power of every ancestral witch who has been consecrated into Los Angeles soil. However, according to Christopher Blackwell, this power can only be harnessed within the boundaries of Los Angeles, meaning that should the witch abandon the area, they will be rendered powerless. It has also been proven that the ancestral spirit(s) can deny the use of their power to any Los Angeles witch, including the Regent. Connective Magic Connective Magic is a form of sorcery that allows a witch to create a semi-permanent bond that draws strength from other supernatural beings such as another witch. The witch, Dahlia however invented her own brand of this Magic which allows while augmenting said witch's power. It can also be used to draw on the strength of an immortal to achieve true immortality in conjunction with the immortality slumber spell. However, neutralizing or killing said immortal being would similarly affect the witch. Unlike sacrificial magic, the target which energy is drawn from is not hurt. Dark Magic Dark Magic (or Black Magic) is an extremely powerful form of sorcery that draws on malevolent powers, and may be used for negative purposes (e.g. to cause destruction or misfortune, to injure or kill, or for the profit of oneself rather than for the benefit of others). In popular usage, the term "dark magic" is often used to describe any form of sorcery that is used against the Balance of Nature. Sacrificial Magic Sacrificial Magic is a very powerful form of sorcery that is highly dependent upon the ritualistic sacrifices of supernatural creatures and sometimes, even animals. Similar to expression, this form of sorcery draws its energy from the power of every supernatural creature that is sacrificed. According to the witch Carson, Sacrificial Magic is but one of the many branches of witchcraft and is popularly practiced by many of the witches in Los Angeles. Description Spells are capable of producing a wide variety of effects, both harmful and helpful. They can produce physical changes in a person or object. They can also have profound mental effects such as altering memory, manipulating emotions, or causing magical compulsion (such as forcing someone to speak truthfully). Spells can manipulate other kinds of magic, such as binding (preventing the use of) a witch's powers, transferring powers between individuals or objects, breaking magical barriers, lifting curses, protection from harm and range from healing to resurrecting the dead. Some spells require more than one witch to make them work in order to increase the amount of magic and therefore potential power available for the spell. Spells and Rituals One of the defining characteristics of a witch is their ability to cast spells; a "spell" being the word used to signify the means employed to carry out a magical action. A spell could consist of a ritual action, a set of words, a verse, or any combination of these. For reasons unknown, the majority of spells used by practitioners of Spirit Magic and/or Traditional Magic are spoken in an ancient language very similar to Latin, while the ancient witch Dahlia was shown to perform her spells in Aramaic (which is a language that originated from the Middle East). However, witches who practice other forms of magic have been known to use spells in different languages; for example, the French Quarter Coven, which practices Ancestral Magic, performs their spells in French or French Creole, while the (The Traveler typically perform their spells in Czech). Dominic Chamberlain and Christopher Chamberlain has shown to perform spells using an yet to be identified Ancient Magic in Old Norse, similar to the modern-day Norwegian, Icelandic, Germanic, Danish, Scandinavian and Swedish languages.